Arizona State's rise has been one of the best stories in college football this season. On Saturday the Sun Devils face their toughest challenge to date. Their strength has been preparation and execution. Look for that to pay off once again against the Utes. Take Arizona State.

The Utes outplayed USC but lost because of a turnover in the red zone. Utah has won games since by convincing scores, winning by a combined 90-20 in those games against Washington State and Oregon State. Arizona State QB Jayden Daniels' only below average games were both on the road, at Cal and at Michigan State. The Utes are just as good if not better than both of those. Take Utah.

A 5-1 team straight-up getting nearly two touchdowns against a 5-1 foe? That’s a keeper. Arizona State grinds out victories, no matter the venue, having won at California and Michigan State when both were ranked. Utah’s home-field advantage has been overestimated lately, what with its 1-4 ATS slide. The Sun Devils have ruled this series, going 6-2 outright since the Utes were welcomed into the Pac-12.

There's been a lot of talk about Tom Herman's record as an underdog. Well, we've ignored another Herman in this area: Herm Edwards. Since taking over at Arizona State, Edwards' team has been an underdog 11 times. It is 8-3 ATS in those games, with a few outright upsets. It's also 5-1 ATS as a road dog. In what should be a low-scoring, defensive affair, I'll take two touchdowns, thanks.